


covered by nature

by glazedsun



Series: taken by the sea [1]
Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, Little Mix (Band), One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Mythology, M/M, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-07-20
Packaged: 2018-04-10 06:10:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4380260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glazedsun/pseuds/glazedsun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis does his best to stay away from humans... until he meets Nick.</p>
            </blockquote>





	covered by nature

**Author's Note:**

  * For [generalllymild](https://archiveofourown.org/users/generalllymild/gifts).



> this is for your tomlinshaw mythology prompt! it got quite a bit away from me, but i do hope you enjoy it! my apologies that niall, zayn, and ed were only briefly mentioned. they had bigger roles in my head, but i couldn't fit them them in without the story being about two or three times the length. 
> 
> title is from "little bird" by ed sheeran, which i highly recommend listening to while reading. i also recommend "the siren's call" by darren hayes, which was partial inspiration for the story.
> 
> a HUGE thanks to my betas, [failurebydesign](http://archiveofourown.org/users/failurebydesign/) and [kellidianetomlinson](http://kellidianetomlinson.tumblr.com/) for their help and guidance. any mistakes are mine!

Magic could never truly fade away. It changed; it shifted; it hid. But magic never actually went away, despite how hard humans tried. Humans spoke of creatures of legend and mythology, as if they were all fictional. Not only did those creatures exist during ancient times, but many of them still lived on. Throughout the centuries, many creatures had different ways of hiding. Some remained in their caves, coming out on occasion to torment humans or play in the forests (depending entirely, of course, on the creature in question), but careful to stay away from hunters. Others evolved ways to disguise themselves to better blend in with the humans around them, often through shifting or cloaking some of their features. Many families, as well as individual creatures, just travelled around the world to find new safe places. It wasn’t unusual anymore to discover an Anubis living in the Mexican desert, a centaur living in Russian forests, or a Valkyrie and her horse galloping through the plains of Canada. 

Instead of sticking together to try and blend in, Louis and his family had decided to spread out. He was a siren; an unusual siren at that. Almost every other siren, even throughout history, was a female. It was rare that male sirens existed, but every so often through their evolution, one was born. He still had all the gifts of a siren: a voice that could either lure humans to their death, or to insanity, as well as a huge, beautiful golden brown pair of wings and feet that were more like the claws of a falcon. Over the decades, the wings had evolved into their own limbs, giving the sirens more human-like arms and hands to better allow them to blend in, should they decide to cloak their wings. Louis’ sister, Lottie, enjoyed this very much. She had flown to an island near Turkey, and often lured men in closer by appearing as a stranded young woman. Once they were closer, she would sing to them, driving them slowly insane until they dove into the water. Like Lottie, Louis’ mother and sisters were scattered throughout the Baltic Sea. Louis himself had made himself a nest on the island of Ibiza. 

He was a bit of a failure of a siren. Some of his best friends reminded him of this sometimes. Harry was a merman; he travelled throughout the Baltic Sea. Even down in his home of Atlantis, the other merpeople gossiped about the strange male siren, the first of his kind born in 245 years, who didn’t much like to kill humans. Louis only drove those to death that he thought deserved it: murderers, rapists, abusers, the lowest of the humans. Because of this, he had a close bond with Perrie, a lovely harpy with golden wings. Harpies only killed evildoers, though they did love to find picnics and feasts set up by humans and steal their food when nobody was looking. Perrie often brought Louis little treats while they talked. She told him about gossip she’d heard, too, how many creatures (even non-violent ones) didn’t seem to understand Louis. 

That particular morning, he and Perrie were lounging together on the beach. It was quiet, many of the tourists still nursing their hangovers and not yet out and about. Neither of them were using any cloaking magic, letting their wings absorb the sunlight. Perrie often used her magic to change the colors of some of her feathers, and currently they were a soft lilac, shimmering in the sun. There was a plate of pastries between them, something she’d stolen from a brunch being hosted by a nearby resort. They were happily gossiping about a sea monster that had been spotted in the Black Sea, when there was a commotion from the water.

“A little help here?” came a familiar voice from the water. Harry popped up from under the water, struggling to hold an unconscious man in his arms. 

Louis quickly dropped the pastry he’d been snacking on and jumped into flight, gathering the man into his arms carefully. Even though the man was a tall, skinny beanpole, it had been a long time since Louis had actually lifted anyone, magical creature or human, in his arms while in flight. His wings drooped so he nearly dropped the man in the water, but he gathered his strength and lifted up enough to fly the rest of the way into the beach. He laid the man down, frowning. “What’s this, Hazza?” 

“Human,” Harry grinned brightly, as if he’d told the funniest joke either Louis or Perrie had ever heard. Louis rolled his eyes, motioning for Harry to get on with the story. “His name is Grimmy, I think. I was just out on that rock I like, under the stars. There’s nothing like it,” he sighed wistfully.

“Get on with it, you!” Perrie exclaimed, tossing a bit of food at Harry, who’d swum up as close to them as he could while remaining in the surf. 

He batted the crumbs out of his hair, shaking it so droplets of water went everywhere. He then continued on with his story as if he wasn’t interrupted at all. “While I was laying there, I heard music. You know me, I love music!” Louis smiled fondly at the boy. “So, there was music, so I looked over where I heard it from. There was a big group of people, they were all partying. Big fire and everything. Pez, you should have seen the spread of food! They were partying and stuff, it was fun to watch. I had to go because Gemma called me, but even when I got back they were still out there. A bunch of them had left, but he,” he motioned to the still-unconscious man, “was there with some others. He decided to go out swimming at dawn, his friends took his clothes and ran off. He started getting tired, started to drown, so I saved him and brought him here when I saw you guys!” 

Louis blinked a bit at how abruptly the long-winded story ended. “What do you expect us to do?” He asked, making a face at the man. As he actually looked, though, he realized that the man was beautiful. Louis blinked quickly, turning back to Harry hopefully before either of his companions noticed the lingering looks he’d left for this “Grimmy”. 

“Don’t you know CPR or summat?” Harry shrugged, and both Louis and Perrie stared at him for a moment before bursting out into laughter.

“You… let me get this straight,” Perrie said through her giggles, “you saved a human from drowning… and brought him to a _siren_ and a _harpy_ thinking we’d know how to save his life? You… do know we usually kill humans, right?”

“Rarely!” Harry pouted. “And he’s done nothing wrong, so neither of you should mess with him. Just save him.” 

Louis sighed, running his hand through his hair. He had no clue how to wake the man up, with the limited knowledge of humans he had. He looked over at Perrie, and saw she looked about as clueless as he was. He sighed again, making up his mind. “Haz, out of here. Pez, either leave or cloak.” Louis didn’t wait for an answer, just closed his eyes and felt a warmth envelope him as he used his cloaking to hide his feet and wings, as well as give the appearance of clothes over his body. He didn’t like cloaking- not only was it warm, but it felt a weird kind of shimmery, as well as constricting with the clothing. 

When he opened his eyes again, both Harry and Perrie had left. He nodded to himself, gathering his wits about him and then running in the direction where he knew there was a resort. He longed for his wings, it would be so much quicker and easier to get where he needed to. People were starting to be out and about, though, he could sense them even if he couldn’t see them. He didn’t want to risk it. Once he reached the resort, he immediately looked for someone who looked in charge. 

“Excuse me!” he said quickly, doing his best to keep control of his voice. If he didn’t keep any trace of song out of his voice, it would affect the human he was talking to. While Louis did sometimes like to play little tricks on humans that way, he needed the help more. 

“Yes, sir?” The man asked, suddenly suspicious.

“I need help! My friend, he’s hurt, and I don’t know what to do!” Even though Louis kept his voice mostly steady, he pulled a panicked look onto his face. It was convincing enough that the security guard picked up his walkie-talkie and asked for some medics to come down to join them. Once they had all gathered, Louis led them in the direction of where he’d left Grimmy. Even though he had left the man alone, he knew that Harry was underwater nearby, keeping an eye on the man for Louis. When they all got there, the humans focusing on the other human, Louis heard a splash. He turned to see Harry surface just long enough to give him a wave and a wink before diving back under and probably off to go tell the stories to some other merpeople. Horrible gossips, the lot of them.

After Harry was gone, Louis turned his attention back to the men surrounding Grimmy. The medic-looking one was doing something to Grimmy- Louis assumed it was the strange CPR that Harry mentioned. Louis had no idea what it was, but it looked weird. No matter, though, because it worked. Not much later, the man was coughing up water and opening his eyes. Louis did not look into his eyes. He so did not look into the warm brown eyes, and he definitely did not feel warm all over. That was definitely the cloaking at work. 

The men wrapped a blanket around Grimmy, helping him sit up and asking him what had happened. He told of the party Harry had mentioned, and then feeling tired in the water and waking up on the beach. 

“I thought you said he was your friend,” the security guard said, giving that suspicious look to Louis again.

“Okay, fine, I’ve never met him,” Louis sighed. “I saw him in the water and pulled him out, but I didn’t know how to help him.” He didn’t really need to say that it was actually a merman that saved him, because the last thing Louis wanted was for _humans_ to look at him like he was insane, when usually he was the one who _made_ humans insane. 

“Thank you,” Grimmy said, giving a soft smile to Louis. Louis flushed, looking down. They gathered the man up, ready to walk back to the beach. Louis stood there, off to the side, watching as they began to walk. “You’re not coming?” 

Louis shook his head. “No, just wanted to make sure you were going to be okay. I’ve got to meet up with my friends, they’ll be worried about me.” 

“Are you sure?” Grimmy asked, pouting a little. “I’d like to properly thank you… once I get into some clothes and find my wallet.”

“Positive, it’s fine,” Louis smiled, running a hand nervously through his hair. He wasn’t good at being around humans for long periods of time, and he was starting to get a bit anxious. 

“At least tell me your name,” The man pressed, and… okay, Louis could do that.

“Louis,” he smiled a bit.

“Nick Grimshaw,” the man bowed, looking awkward in the blanket draped around his shoulders. “Mates call me Grimmy. See you around, maybe.” 

“Yeah, see ya,” Louis said softly, watching as the group of humans turned around and walked away. Once they were completely gone, Louis let out a sigh of relief.

“Longest you’ve ever been around humans without killing them?” came a familiar voice from next to him. Louis looked up to see Perrie hovering in the air above him, her legs pulled up to her chest so her claws wouldn’t drag in the water. Louis just nodded, looking back in the direction they’d gone off in. “Aw, look at you, going soft for a human,” she sung, flying a few feet up the beach so she could land in the warm sand. “Never thought I’d see the day,” she teased, reaching over to tug on his hair.

“I am not,” he argued, swatting her hand away. Soft for a human? Never. Sure, he didn’t kill them. Didn’t really mind them much, if he didn’t have to interact with them. But soft on one? No way. 

“Uh huh,” Perrie laughed, flicking the ends of her wings. “Weren’t you supposed to meet with Liam today?”

“Fuck,” Louis swore, looking at Perrie with wide eyes. “Thanks for reminding me!” He quickly dropped the cloaking spell, opting to shift instead. While sirens didn’t have the ability to fully shift into a human form, they were able to shift in another way to hide in plain sight. Suddenly, a golden brown falcon appeared in the air next to Perrie. He circled around her once before flying away, letting out a loud cry as he made his way inland.

Just a short flight later, he found himself drifting through the beautiful pine forest. For as much as Louis hated cloaking himself to blend in with the humans, he adored being in the form of a bird of prey. There was nothing quite like the freedom of being able to soar through the air, crying out as loud as he wanted and chasing some of the native birds. He never killed wildlife as a falcon. Even after 150 years, he’d never quite been able to handle the idea of tearing apart raw food with his beak and eating it. He much preferred cooking anything he ate first. His mother and sisters, of course, had no problem with it: chalk it up to another failure at being a siren. Then again, his mother and sisters didn’t have a harpy to bring him the most delicious human food. 

Louis couldn’t talk while in falcon form, so when looking for someone he had to settle with letting out sharp cries. 

“Lou, over here!” Came a loud response from a path not far away. Louis let out a happy cry, dodging through branches until he spotted the centaur waiting for him. He squawked happily, perching on the centaur’s long body. “Ow, Lou, you know that hurts,” Liam turned around and glared at the bird, trying to shoo him away. “Those talons are not made for gentle horse riding.” 

Louis quickly shifted back to his natural siren form, sitting sideways on Liam’s back as he let out a sharp laugh. “Gentle horse riding. Right.” He reached up to mess with Liam’s hair, causing the centaur to reach back and grab the siren’s hands and hold them down. 

“None of that today,” Liam laughed. “We have things to get to!” 

“Right, right, business as usual,” Louis sighed. He would rather play around with Liam. 

One morning, Louis had shifted into his falcon form and discovered the remote forest on the opposite side of the island from where he usually stayed. He’d gone exploring in it, discovering all sorts of native animals. Among the native animals was also a small herd of violent centaurs. Standing apart from the herd, though, was Liam. He was tall and fit, his horse hide a rich, bright brown while his tail was an even deeper brown, matching the hair on his head. Louis was curious why this centaur was apart from the rest, so he landed on the horse’s back. The centaur startled, and Louis quickly shifted back to his siren form. The siren learned a lot about Liam as they sat and talked, occasionally sending glances back to the group of centaurs who were circling each other, looking like they were about to start a fight. Liam wasn’t like all the other centaurs that Louis had met in the past. Centaurs, in general, were a violent, hateful group. Liam was different, though. Liam was a direct descendant of the great centaur Chiron, and he was more interested in reading, learning, and exploring than fighting and torturing humans like the rest of the herd on the island. Louis discovered that Liam was a bit of a kindred spirit, hesitant to harm humans unless it was necessary. Every few days, Louis would fly into the forest, and the two of them would spend time together, often with Liam galloping through the woods while Louis dipped in and out of the branches. Some days, though, they would actually get down to business. 

“So what’s going on with those guys,” Louis asked, motioning with his head to the group of centaurs, where a brawl had just broken out. 

Liam rolled his eyes and made grabby hands for the flower crown that Louis was in the process of making for the centaur. “Tourist season. Any time the humans get too close, they get especially on edge. They know that I would be pissed if they go and kill all the humans that try to enter this part of the forest, so they let steam off this way. It’s really annoying, but it helps. There used to be so many stories about humans wandering into the forest to never return, because they’d just… take them. Now we’re safer from hunters coming in and trying to figure out what’s going on and killing us.” Liam shrugged, placing the flower crown atop his head and grinning. 

“King of the centaurs,” Louis said, mock bowing to the centaur despite still being perched on his back. “I met a human today.”

“Oh yeah?” Liam asked, eyes widening. Beside Harry, Liam was the only magical creature that Louis had ever met who was so fascinated with humanity. He’d even fallen in love with a human, once; it was decades ago, and he’d been devastated when she had passed away before he’d ever had the courage to approach her.

“Yeah, Harry saved him from drowning, and I got him help.” Louis fidgeted a bit. 

Liam knew that Louis was always a bit anxious being around humans, so he carefully pulled one of the flowers out of his crown and handed it to Louis. The siren flushed, taking the flower and placing it behind his ear. “What was he like?”

“Didn’t talk to him much,” Louis admitted, flushing a bit. He stretched one of his wings, pulling it forward enough that he could begin to preen it. It was a nervous tick of his. His fingers worked over the feathers, pulling out dead ones and smoothing out others, so it would be easier for the new feathers to grow in. “He wanted me to go back with him, thank me, but....” he trailed off with a shrug, blushing.

“Louis! You should have taken advantage of that!” Liam gasped. Despite his vast knowledge, and the highly special bloodline, he had still never quite mastered any type of cloaking or shifting magic that would have allowed him to get as close to humans as he wanted. Because of that, any bits of stories he could get from Louis, he absorbed happily. 

“I can’t!” Louis whined a little. “You know if I say the wrong thing, he’s dead.”

“You can learn to control it better, maybe?” Liam suggested, eyes wide as if he suddenly had an idea.

“What makes you think I even want to?” 

“Because I know your usual anxiety about humans, and this nervousness you’re showing is different. It reminds me of how I was about Carmen,” Liam said gently.

“I met him once!” Louis protested with a frown. First Perrie claiming he was soft on the man, now Liam? What was he doing that made his friends think that? “He’s just a tourist, anyway, I’ll probably never see him again. Carmen lived on the island.”

Liam shrugged. “If you see him again and change your mind, come back to me. I know just the right lads who can help you out.”

“ _Lads_?” Louis scoffed with an eye roll. “You’ve been studying the tourists and picking up on their language too much again.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Liam laughed, bucking his back legs up so that Louis fell in an undignified heap of limbs and wings. The centaur crossed his arms, looking down at the siren and smirking at the annoyed expression he saw on his face.

“Just for that, I’m leaving, you brute,” Louis huffed, trying to stand up. He tripped over one of his wing tips, and let out a frustrated sound as he fell back on his arse. Rather than deal with it again, Louis just shifted into his falcon form, crying out a goodbye to Liam, who waved cheerfully at him. Just because he was in a combative mood, Louis flew toward the herd of centaurs. Their fighting had died down, and they were mostly just lounging and soaking up some of the late afternoon sun. Perfect, catch them while they’re relaxed. He swooped down, circling around some of the centaurs, cackling in his head while some of them sleepily batted at him and growled. Before they could compose themselves enough to grab their nearby bows and arrows, Louis climbed high into the sky, drifting along a current of air back toward the resort. He flew over it, low enough that he could tell people apart but high enough no one would really notice him, looking for Nick. When he didn’t spot the man, Louis decided it was time for a nap and flew back to the beach. After flying down to grab a few fish for a meal, he flew to the cave that he’d made his home in. Once he was inside, he shifted back to his natural form and cooked the fish over a low fire. Once he was done eating, Louis curled up near the fire and fell into a shallow slumber.

By the time that Louis woke up, it was already dusk. He stretched his wings behind him, sighing happily as the muscles sorted themselves out. He then flexed and stretched his claws, making an even happier sound. Once he was satisfied, Louis decided to head out to the beach to see if either Perrie or Harry were around. He flew out of the cave, drifting in the air and looking around. He didn’t sense either of his friends, but he did see someone sitting at the edge of the water. He quickly shifted into his falcon form, wanting to get closer to the man to see what was going on. As soon as he realized it was Nick, he froze. His heart sped up, and for a moment he couldn’t figure out what to do. When it was obvious that Nick wasn’t going anywhere, Louis decided he had to at least… say hello. So he flew back to the entrance of his cave and shifted quickly, putting up the cloaking spell before walking back down the beach, trying to make it look like he’d just been out for a stroll along the water and not walking out after a nap in a cave. 

“Lou? Is that you?” Nick asked, his voice hopeful. 

“Hey, Nick,” Louis smiled, trying to keep his voice as controlled as possible. “What are you doing out here by yourself?” 

“Was hoping you’d be here, actually,” Nick admitted. “Asked around at the resort, nobody had any idea who you were so I hoped maybe if I came back to the same spot… I’d eventually find you again.”

Louis blinked, trying to contain his laughter. “You were going to just… sit here and wait for me? And hope I’d show up again? What if I hadn’t? How long were you planning on waiting?”

To Louis’ delight, Nick let out a loud laugh. It was one of the most beautiful sounds that Louis had ever heard. “Stupid, innit? Figured I’d wait a bit, until I got distracted or bored. But here you are.”

“Here I am,” Louis echoed, sitting down on the sand next to Nick. “So why were you looking for me?”

“Wanted to thank you again, for saving me. See if you’d want to join me and my friends, do some dancing and maybe let me buy you a drink or two?” 

“It was no problem,” Louis flushed, looking down. 

“My life’s a pretty big deal,” Nick disagreed.

Louis raised his eyebrow. “Cocky, much?” 

“I’m a very important person,” Nick waved, puffing out his chest. Louis’ eyebrow raised even further. “Alright, fine, I just like the idea of being alive better than being dead. Though I _am_ a bit important back home. Newest X Factor judge, I am.” If Nick was trying to win Louis over, it wasn’t working too well. Louis just blinked slowly, not understanding exactly what Nick was referring to. “Anyway,” he sighed in defeat, “Come on, have a drink with me and my mates? Please? They all want to meet you and thank you.”

“They should thank me,” Louis huffed, “If they hadn’t run off, you wouldn’t have needed saving.”

“Oi, leave them be! Not all of them were there!” Nick crossed his arms over his chest, suddenly defensive.

“Just sayin,” Louis shrugged. “I can’t, though.”

Nick pouted at him, but Louis was friends with Harry and Liam. He had spent a century becoming immune to their pouts, it would take a lot more than that from Nick to convince him. “Please?”

“I can’t, I have plans,” Louis protested. He didn’t, not really, but the idea of being around that many humans and around music and alcohol made Louis’ anxiety skyrocket. 

Thankfully, Perrie chose that moment to come running down the beach, wearing a cloaking spell of her own. “Tommo! Where the fuck have you been! Come on.”

“Speaking of,” Louis shrugged apologetically to Nick, turning to Perrie to mouth a quick ‘thank you’. “I have to get going. It was nice to see you, though.”

“Come on, Louis, please let me thank you somehow?” Nick pleaded, clear he wasn’t going to back down.

“I don’t know,” Louis said slowly, wanting desperately to start preening his feathers but knowing he couldn’t.

“You could bring a picnic lunch here tomorrow,” Perrie suggested, and Louis turned and glared at her. He took back all the nice things that he was thinking about her. Perrie was actually the absolute worst ever. 

“Deal,” Nick grinned, and Louis felt his heart flutter a bit. They said their goodbyes, and Nick ran off, presumably to meet up with the friends he’d mentioned.

“What was that?” Louis spun around, glaring at Perrie as she let go of her cloaking spell. “Picnic on the beach? Really? You know I can’t spend time around humans!” 

“Please,” Perrie rolled her eyes. “You’ll be fine. Just eat and get it over with so he’ll stop trying to track you down and thank you.”

Louis sighed as he dropped his own cloaking spell. She did have a point. If he kept turning down Nick’s requests, it was entirely possible that the man would just… keep coming back. However, instead of giving her the satisfaction of knowing that she was right, he just said, “You just want to steal his food, don’t you?”

A sly grin lit up Perrie’s face. “You know me so well, siren.” Louis just laughed and sat down in the sand. “You know,” she said, the sly grin still on her face, “I could always talk to Zayn for you, see what he can do to help you be less likely to accidentally kill Nick. If you want to be around him more.”

“First Liam suggests someone, now you,” Louis groaned. “What makes you guys think this? And that they can help?” 

“Who did Liam suggest?” Perrie asked out of curiosity.

“Didn’t say, just that he knew someones who could help.” Louis shrugged.

Perrie thought for a moment. “Might’ve meant Niall and Ed, I’ve heard he’s mates with them. I’ve heard they’re extremely powerful.” Louis just shrugged in agreement, letting out a little sigh. Zayn was a powerful warlock, one of the most powerful in a long time. He was extremely reclusive, generally keeping to himself in his tower, studying spells and potions and the world. He’d had a soft spot for Perrie since they’d met on accident, though, and to date she was the only one who had ever been inside of Zayn’s tower. Niall and Ed were both fae folk. Ed was a leprechaun, while Niall was of the Aos Sí race, the kings and queens of the fairy race. They were both extremely magical on their own, but together were even more powerful. Louis hadn’t met any of the three, and yet his friends seemed to be offering their services up to him and for… what? A human he’d probably never see again? They were all wrong, he did not have any type of soft spot for Nick.

“Let’s just drop it,” Louis suggested hopefully. Perrie considered it for a moment, then shrugged. “Good. Now what do you say we go for a flight?”

Perrie’s eyes lit up immediately. “Yes! Let’s! Jesy told me about this amazing little island not far from here, no humans at all. Just a bit of quiet nature and huge waves against the rocks.”

“My kind of place,” Louis grinned, and they both immediately took flight and headed off in the direction of the island.

-

As it got closer and closer to when Louis was supposed to meet Nick, Louis wound up tighter and tighter. He was an absolute nervous wreck, and everyone was struggling to calm him down. Perrie had tried, and gotten frustrated rather quickly. It was a testament to how nervous he was, really, because she usually had plenty of patience for him. Harry had tried, but hadn’t really helped. Even Liam was struggling. Louis was currently in the forest with Liam, pacing in a circle around the centaur. 

“You’re making me dizzy,” Liam snapped, “stop it. Come here.”

Louis huffed in annoyance but allowed himself to step in to his friend. Liam opened his arms, and Louis immediately fell into them. Their hugs were always awkward, but they were one of Louis’ favorite things in the world. He was able to lean his head on Liam’s sturdy shoulders, while part of his wings could wrap around them both. The tips of the wings touched right above Liam’s front hooves. Often, when he’d had enough of the hug, he tickled Liam until the centaur let go, front legs lifting off the ground and stretching away from the offending feathers. It always made Louis giggle.

Well, usually. He was too nervous to have that reaction that day. “Hey, what’s wrong?” Liam asked gently, stroking Louis’ hair.

“I’ve never… spent time with humans for longer than to kill them. I don’t… know how to hold a ‘normal’ conversation without driving him insane,” Louis murmured. 

“How much singing do you have to do in order to truly drive them insane?” Liam asked, trying to work out ideas to help Louis.

“If I’m proper singing? To drive them insane to the point of wanting to jump into the ocean, a few minutes if that. There’s different… ways,” Louis said. Explaining the siren’s song, well, it was next to impossible to really explain the intricacies of it to someone who wasn’t a siren. 

“And if you’re just talking?”

“I don’t know,” Louis whined, “That’s the problem. I’ve played tricks on humans, half-singing little lines here and there to make them a little crazy and do stupid shit, but never anything lasting. But I’ve never… talked to one without it being for that reason.”

“Would it make you feel more comfortable if I came with?” Liam suggested.

Louis blinked slowly. “How… how in the world would I explain why there is a centaur hanging out at our private picnic?”

“I won’t crash your date,” Liam laughed, and. WHAT?

“It’s not a date!” Louis cried out, flicking Liam with his wing. “It’s just lunch.”

“Whatever you say,” Liam snickered, jumping out of the way of the wayward wings. “I don’t have the cloaking magic, but if we combine my magic and your cloaking or shifting magic, I can probably shift into a full horse. I don’t think our magic’s strong enough for me to cloak these guys,” he bucked his hind legs up, kicking them out back for emphasis, “but if I’m just hanging out there as a horse it won’t be as weird. And then if anything starts to go wrong, I’ll be there and can either do some crazy horse thing or conjure a storm.”

“Crazy horse thing? What are you going to do, take a massive dump and have it ruin the so-called romantic picnic?” Louis snickered, trying to picture Nick’s face if that were to happen. The laughter helped to ease some of his nerves, and Liam looked relieved. And even though Louis wouldn’t admit it out loud, the idea of having Liam right by his side, watching over and protecting him, made him feel a lot more comfortable about everything.

“Could do,” Liam laughed, shaking his head in amusement. “Now come on, it’s getting late, you’ll want to be there before him, right?” Louis nodded. “Okay, jump up on my back and use your cloak over both of us. I’ll try and feed off it to shift.”

“Right,” Louis climbed on Liam’s back, straddling him. Louis actually quite enjoyed going for rides with Liam. There was a clearing in the forest, and they would often run through it. Louis loved the feeling of the wind through his wings, the power of the horse underneath him. And Liam always whooped and hollered with laughter as they ran around, often trying to distract each other until one or both of them wound up falling to a heap on the ground. 150 year old siren, 400 year old centaur, and they still acted like carefree children sometimes, maturity thrown out the window. This time, though, would be a little more serious of a run. Once he was settled, Louis cast the cloaking spell, closing his eyes to try and help it envision both of them. He felt a surge of magic flow up from Liam and meet his own, and when he opened his eyes, he was sitting on a horse that was no longer half-man. 

Liam let out a loud whinny, happy that his idea had worked. He reared up, tossing his head and taking off into a canter through the forest. Louis yelled and scrambled to grip the horse’s mane. Once they settled into the smooth canter, Louis was able to lean forward and wrap his arms around the horse’s sturdy neck. Liam then broke into a gallop until they reached the beach. Once there, Louis climbed off his friend, sitting in the sand. He began to sing softly in ancient Greek, gently stroking the centaur’s forehead, smiling at the almost feather shaped marking that was there. He pressed a gentle kiss in the middle of it, grinning as Liam huffed out a warm breath of happiness. Louis continued singing a few more lines until he sensed the presence of a human a bit further up the beach. 

Louis turned around and spotted Nick walking toward him. The man was dressed in pale shorts and a black button down with a crazy pattern on it, and carrying a large picnic basket. Of course, it was barely even buttoned. Louis swallowed thickly when he took in the sight, and felt the horse nudge him. “Traitor,” he muttered to the horse. He turned back to Nick, swallowing a little as he watched him get closer. The other times he had seen Nick, he hadn’t really paid much attention to him. But seeing him walk down the beach at that moment, there was just something magnetic about him. He was drawn to Nick, but he had no idea what it meant.

“Was that you singing?” He asked when he got close enough. Louis tensed up in a panic, and felt Liam nudge him again, this time to try and relax him. “And who’s this?” He set down the basket, walking over to the horse. Nick held out his head, letting Liam sniff him before Nick ran his hand down Liam’s neck. It was clear that if Nick had heard any singing, it hadn’t been enough to affect him.

“Just like to sing to Liam here, sometimes,” Louis murmured shyly, standing up to greet Nick. “Don’t like to sing for anyone else.”

“That’s too bad, you’ve got a lovely voice,” Nick smiled, turning to Louis. Louis flushed and accepted the hand that Nick stuck out, shaking it. “Good to see you.”

“You, too,” Louis said, smiling brightly. “What’d you bring?” 

“All kinds of food. ‘m afraid I can’t cook, but I got a nice spread from room service.” Nick grinned, then bent over and pulled a blanket out of the basket. He spread it out over the sand, motioning for Louis to sit down while he unpacked everything else. 

There was a massive amount of food. Nick pulled out everything from empanadas to croquetas, and even a giant bowl of paella. Louis’ face absolutely lit up when he saw the paella, which made Nick laugh. Things like empanadas were easy for Perrie to snatch up, but she’d never been able to discover a way to effectively steal an entire dish of paella. Louis had always loved the smell of it, but so rarely got to actually eat it. “Big fan?” Nick grinned, setting the paella down closest to Louis. He just nodded happily, glancing down at it before looking back to see what else Nick was pulling out. 

There was also plenty of fresh fruit, and a chilled white wine. Once the glasses- stemless and plastic, thankfully- were poured and set down, Nick grabbed an apple from the tray of fruit. “Here you go, boy,” he offered the apple to Liam. The horse whinnied in appreciation, snatching up the apple and wandering away. Liam stood far enough away to give them some privacy, but close enough that he could see if Louis needed him to step in. “Didn’t know you had a horse,” Nick said once he finally sat down.

“Don’t suppose you know anything about me,” Louis grinned a little, reaching for a bowl to help himself to a huge serving of the paella. “He’s not really mine, though. Met him out near the forests, we bonded. I’m the only one he lets ride him,” Louis shrugged. To be fair, all of that was true.

“Suppose I don’t. Love to learn more, though. So you live on the island?” Nick asked while he made up a plate for himself.

Louis nodded. He took a big forkful of the paella, humming happily. Still one of his favorites, definitely. “Yeah, lived here since I was little. Keep to myself, mostly, me and my mates.” He looked up at Nick. “You on holiday?”

“Sort of,” Nick shrugged as he began to eat. “Did a few shows from here, then took a few days to just party and have fun. I’m flying back to London in a couple of days, that’s why I wanted to make sure to thank you properly.”

Louis flushed, looking down at his paella. He pushed an empty shell out of the way, trying to get to the piece of shrimp that was hiding underneath it. “It really was no big deal,” he said softly, looking up at Nick. “Didn’t even do the saving, I reckon. Medics took care of that.”

Nick made a face at Louis, throwing a bit of crust from his empanada into Louis’ hair. “Don’t be so modest. You’re the one who pulled me out of the water and got the help. Saving had to start there, right?”

Louis felt a bit of a lump in his throat, and glanced over at Liam, who was standing nearby. He felt a bit bad that technically, it wasn’t even him that pulled him out of the water. If Harry hadn’t noticed him in the first place, then who knows what might have happened. But how could Louis explain that? He couldn’t. “Okay, you’re welcome then,” Louis smiled a little.

“Much better,” Nick grinned, reaching for his glass of wine and taking a sip. Louis picked his own up, staring down at it for a moment. Because he tried to stay far away from humans, that meant Louis also stayed away from alcohol. The last thing that Louis needed was to get drunk and inadvertently burst out into song. “Not much of a drinker?” Nick asked, raising his eyebrow as he watched the hesitant expression on Louis’ face.

“Not really,” Louis mumbled, blushing. 

“You’re just full of surprises,” Nick grinned, then reached back into the basket. He produced a bottle of water, and handed it to Louis, taking Louis’ wine glass and setting it next to his own. “I know this isn’t very exciting, but at least it’s something.”

“Thank you,” Louis blushed, glad that the man didn’t push him into drinking the wine. He was starting to really enjoy Nick’s company, and the last thing he wanted to do was ruin it by drinking. “So, what do you do?” He asked once he got the bottle open and took a drink.

Nick’s whole face lit up at the question. “Little bit of everything. ‘m on the radio back home, and I’m just starting to do my first season as a judge on X Factor.”

“What’s X Factor?” Louis asked, tilting his head slightly. He found that he was actually genuinely interested in hearing more about Nick. There was just something about his voice… Louis could easily understand why he had a job on radio. It was weird, hearing the power of someone else’s voice when Louis knew what he could do with his. 

After taking a drink of his wine, Nick answered. “It’s a singing competition, going to judge and mentor. Big fan of music and discovering talent, that’s why I asked about your singing.”

“I can’t,” Louis blushed, looking down into his now empty bowl where the paella had been. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw two things: a flash of feathers that was definitely Perrie swooping in for some croquettes, and the other was Liam lifting his head, ready to come in if Louis needed him to.

Luckily, Nick could sense Louis’ discomfort. “You know, this is nice. I don’t always spend a lot of time on the beach when I come to holiday out here.” He motioned out to the water, making Louis smile again.

“Too busy in the clubs and pubs?” Louis arched his eyebrow, unable to keep the smirk off his face.

Nick grinned at Louis, winking, “Young, single, gay man. Where else am I supposed to be? Gotta live up to the reputation.”

Louis laughed, then couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Living up to the reputation can be so boring. Feels better to be yourself, do what you want.”

“Sounds like you’re speaking from experience,” Nick replied. He bumped his shoulder against Louis’. 

“Family expectations,” Louis gave as an explanation. “Didn’t want to live my life the same as my mum and sisters.”

“Good for you. What do they do?”

Louis blinked a bit, trying to quickly come up with something besides… well, what they actually did. “They hunt and fish, mostly. Never quite had the stomach for it meself, prefer just enjoying nature to killing it.”

“So are you a vegetarian or summat?” Nick asked, though he glanced down at Louis’ empty bowl and the empanada in his hand.

“Nah, I’ll eat it sometimes. Just… don’t like the killing it part much,” he shrugged, picking some crumbs off the crust of the empanada. 

Nick nodded, then stared at him for a few seconds until it started to make Louis a bit uncomfortable and he stared right back. “You remind me of a bird,” Nick finally said, as if he’d been trying to figure it out the whole time.

“A bird? Why?” Louis asked, tilting his head ever so slightly again. 

“Dunno,” Nick shrugged, turning back to his wine. “You’ve just… got this really piercing gaze, and sharp features on your face. And the way you kind of… tilt your head and look around at everything. Just reminds me of a bird. A big one, like a hawk or summat,” He clarified quickly, “Not some… parakeet.”

“Thanks?” Louis laughed, shrugging a bit. It was certainly a fair statement… he was half bird, after all. He just liked knowing that even when he had to hide that part of him, it could still be seen if people paid attention. Nick tilted his head in acknowledgement, then turned out to stare at the water. They sat together in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, Nick sipping at his wine and Louis peeling an orange. 

“You know, it was the weirdest thing,” Nick said after he finished off his glass of wine and picked up Louis’ abandoned glass. “You’re probably going to think I’m crazy.”

“Already do,” Louis said. He shrugged when Nick turned and gave him a surprised look, then they both burst out into laughter. 

“Fair. You’re going to think I’m crazier, then. It’s just… it felt like there was something, you know? The night I almost drowned?”

“What do you mean?” Louis asked, raising an eyebrow and popping a piece of the orange into his mouth. 

“I don’t know. I didn’t say anything to my mates, figured they’d take the piss. Or figured I was just… really drunk and imagining things. But I swear, it felt like something was out there, looking out for me.” Nick motioned toward Harry’s rock, the very rock he had been on when he’d spotted Nick the first time.

Louis blinked slowly, trying to keep the shocked expression from his face. Did this mean… Nick believed? “Like an animal?” He prodded, trying to figure out exactly what Nick was talking about.

“No? I don’t know,” he said, clearly a bit frustrated. “It’s like. You know when you’re little, and your mum tells you all those fairy tales? All those creatures, mermaids and dragons and fairies? You totally believe they exist, or existed. But then when you get older, you’re supposed to stop believing in all that nonsense and fiction. That night, it just… felt like that. That magic. I know, it sounds really childish.”

“Not at all,” Louis said softly, reaching over to rest his hand on Nick’s knee. He glanced over at Liam with wide eyes, and found the horse was staring back at him with about as much of a surprised expression as a horse could muster up. “Do you believe in it? Magic? Mermaids?”

“I never really thought about it,” Nick shrugged, looking down at the glass in his hand. He swirled it a bit, suddenly fidgety and nervous. “But there’s just… certain places, you know? Where it just… feels like it could all be real. There’s this clearing in the forest out by my parents’ place, the way the sun shines, there’s just….” He trails off with a shrug. _Fairy ring_ , Louis’ mind supplies, but he knows better than to say the words out loud. Even if Nick was accepting of magic existing, that didn’t mean he should be overwhelmed with stories of it. “I don’t know if I believe that mermaids exist. But I don’t… _not_ believe, either.” He paused, then looked at Louis with raised eyebrow. “I don’t know why I even told you all of this. But you’re not laughing at me. Why?”

Louis shrugged. “Because there are places on this island that have that same feeling. That energy. I’ve just never met anyone else who’s accepted that.”

Nick’s eyes lit up at that. “I’d love to see those places, if you’d be willing to take me there? You know for, science.” He flushed a little, taken aback by his eagerness. Louis smiled and chewed on his lip. He was so endeared by the man. His eyes widened a bit, and he turned to Liam. The horse lifted his head, shaking it and letting out a whinny that almost sounded like a smug laugh. Louis glared at Liam, then turned back to Nick.

“That would be nice. The best time to go is around dusk, with the sun starting to set in the trees. We could, um, meet here and ride Liam in?” He blushed a little, but screw it. If Liam was going to laugh at him, then Louis was retaliating by making him carry both of them.

“It’s a date,” Nick grinned, laughing gently as Louis sputtered and blushed deeply. “I’ll bring some sweets.”

“Okay,” Louis said shyly.

Nick glanced down at his watch. “Bollocks,” he muttered, jumping up quickly. “Promised my mates I’d meet them at the pool by now. ‘ve gotta get going.” Louis nodded and stood up as well, helping Nick pack everything back into the basket. “I’ll see you later tonight?” He smiled, waiting for Louis to nod before waving and heading off in the direction of his resort.

“Don’t fucking say it,” Louis snarled to Liam, who walked over to him. Louis placed his hand on the horse’s neck, and together they shifted into their natural forms when they were sure Nick was far enough away. “We just have to figure out a way to distract the centaurs so they leave him alone.”

Liam nodded. Louis could tell that Liam wanted so badly to say something, but he held it back. He leaned in and kissed Louis on the cheek. “I’ve got just the thing. I’ll go sort it out. Meet me in the forest in a few hours.” He galloped off, heading back to the forests, weaving away as much as he could to try not to be spotted. Louis sat down heavily in the sand, everything suddenly hitting him. He really was soft on a human. A human he’d never see again after that night. Fuck.

-

The sun was sitting heavy in the sky when Louis flew out to the forest to find Liam. When he spotted Liam, he didn’t even bother with their usual ritual and jokes about his falcon form landing on Liam’s back. He shifted mid-flight, skidding to an awkward landing right in front of the centaur. He just wanted that night to go okay, and he was worried about the centaur herd. “So what’s the plan?” Louis asked Liam once he gathered himself back together.

“I sent the herd out to the other side of the island,” Liam said proudly, adjusting the flower crown on his head, the one that Louis had made him the day prior. 

“How did you manage that?!” Louis gasped, eyes wide.

“King of the centaurs, you said,” Liam smirked, pointing to the crown.

Louis rolled his eyes. “Should have known that would go right to your head. Seriously, Liam. They listen to you sometimes, but to actually leave the forest? The whole herd?”

“Well,” Liam smirked, glancing behind Louis to where there was a rustling. A stunning white and brown osprey soared in, landing on a branch near Louis’ head. “A little birdy may have told me a bit of gossip about a couple female centaurs that may or may not have been spotted near the river.”

“And we all know that group can’t control their hormones or their curiosity, so of course they had to go check it out,” Perrie smirked, back in her natural form but still sitting on the large branch. “There isn’t actually anything down there except actual wildlife native to the island, so they’ll be hunting for a while.”

“I love it,” Louis cackled. “Helping me out AND tricking them. Two of my favorite things.”

“You ready for your date?” Perrie asked, reaching down to tug on a stray piece of Louis’ hair. 

“It’s not-“

“Yes it is!” Liam sang, getting so excited that his front hooves left the ground momentarily. “He said so!”

“Fine,” Louis grumbled, blushing deeply and looking at the ground. “I don’t know if I’m ready. Guess I’m as ready as I can be?” 

Liam nodded, satisfied enough with his answer. “I’ll be with you guys again, and Pez is going to be in the area, too. Haz wanted to come, too, but obviously can’t.”

“You guys are ridiculous. Watching my date,” Louis scoffed, shaking his head. Secretly, though, he was pretty grateful. If anything went wrong, his friends would be right there to come up with a solution. 

“Exhibitionist,” Perrie said fondly, messing up Louis’ hair. He reached up and tried to swat at her, but couldn’t quite reach her.

“Now come on, let’s get back to the beach to meet your boy.” Liam smiled, walking closer so that Louis could hop on and they could shift together again. Once Liam was fully horse again, Louis picked up the flower crown that was hanging awkwardly off the horse’s ear. He adjusted it with a bright laugh, grinning when Liam lifted his head like he was proud.

“Show off,” Louis murmured fondly into the horse’s ear, hugging his neck tightly. Liam let out a happy whinny, Louis waved to Perrie, and then they were off to head back to the beach. 

By the time they got to the beach, Nick was already standing there and waiting for them, small shopping bag slung over his shoulder. Louis waved, blushing when he saw the smile light up Nick’s face.

“Look at you,” he said to Liam, rubbing the horse’s face, smiling at the flower crown. “Are you the fairy prince of Louis’ forests?” Liam huffed out a happy breath, and Nick couldn’t know just how true his words actually were. 

“Might be,” Louis laughed, hugging around Liam’s neck. “Come on, let’s go check out his kingdom.”

“Could do,” Nick grinned, walking around. He stared awkwardly at Liam for a moment. “Okay, help.”

Louis laughed loudly, offering to take the bag from Nick. “Come on, you’re a damn beanpole, you’re tall enough to get up here. If I can make it up here, so can you.”

“You’re also part bird,” Nick muttered, pouting. Louis shrugged, still grinning at Nick. “Fine, but if His Highness moves I’m out of here.” Liam purposely stood very still, his tail barely even twitching. “Damn,” Nick said, raising an eyebrow. “He’s very fluent in English. Maybe he is the fairy prince.” He took a deep breath, then managed to lift his leg and awkwardly jump onto Liam’s back. He automatically wrapped his arms around Louis’ waist.

“Alright?” Louis twisted his head around, smirking back at the taller man. Nick just nodded, so Louis nudged Liam a bit. He started to walk to the forest, taking his time until Nick got more comfortable being on his back.

They walked toward the forest at a leisurely pace. Along the way, Louis and Nick both pointed out different things they spotted: a colorful bird, a weird looking plant, anything that caught their eyes. By the time they were in the forest, and on the outskirts of the clearing, the sun was hanging low in the sky. There was a deep orange glow once they entered the clearing. The sun reflected off some of the flowers there. As soon as Nick saw the place, he couldn’t help but gasp. 

“This is incredible,” he murmured, sliding awkwardly over Liam’s side. He just barely landed on his feet, catching himself before he fell backwards. 

Louis hopped down with much more grace, watching Nick’s expression nervously. He didn’t know why, but it was important that Nick truly understood just what was so special about this place. He wanted the human to understand that there was magic there, even if it wasn’t revealed to him completely. Louis watched as Nick set down the bag that he’d been holding and just sat right down in the grass, eyes wide as he looked around.

He was taken aback when their eyes met, and couldn’t help but blush. “I can see what you mean,” Nick said, motioning for Louis to sit down next to him. “It feels… like something’s buzzing in my veins. There’s a weird energy.”

Louis nodded as he sat down next to Nick. “Powerful, innit?” 

“Places like this make me wonder if magic is real. Is that weird?” Nick paused, looking around him. He watched while a small songbird flew past, landing on the ground. It began to sing a cheerful song.

“See the way the ground is there?” Louis asked, pointing to the grass where the bird was sitting. Around the bird was a large ring, where the ground was raised slightly and the grass was a bit of a darker green. “That’s called a fairy ring. Legend says they’re incredibly powerful places.” Part legend, part reality, Louis thought to himself. Some were more powerful than others; the fairy rings in Niall’s forest were places of great celebration, where pixies, leprechauns, clurichauns, and other fae folk partied. The rings in this forest didn’t host many fae parties, but they still radiated with an ancient power. 

Nick nodded slowly, staring at the ring and trying to decide how he felt about it. “Do you believe in the legends?” He asked, voice hesitant.

“It’s hard not to, when you feel the energy here,” Louis shrugged. Of course he believed; he was curious to see if Nick believed.

Nick took another look around him and nodded, before turning to the bag that he’d brought with. “Think you’re right,” he said lightly, smile a bit awed. He started pulling things out of the bag. As promised, it was mostly sweets, along with a bottle of something bubbly. “Don’t worry,” Nick laughed brightly when he saw that Louis was about to protest. “It’s non-alcoholic. Thought it might go better with the sweets than water. Bit more romantic, innit?”

Louis flushed, ducking his head. It was all a bit overwhelming, really. He was a _siren_. Humans… didn’t bring him treats and bubbly grape juice and certainly not romance. Yet here he was, the sun setting in Liam’s clearing, being spoiled by one of those very humans. “Thank you,” he finally managed to murmur, glancing up at Nick, his eyelashes fluttering. 

“You are beautiful, little bird,” Nick smiled, handing him a plastic flute full with the juice. 

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Louis grinned when he took the flute. Nick rolled his eyes at that, but let out a soft laugh. That laugh was Louis’ new favorite sound. There was just… so much joy in the sound, in the look on Nick’s face. It made Louis’ heart skip a beat, and he knew that he was done for. But what could he possibly do about it? Nick was only there for another day or two at the most, and he had other friends he’d want to spend time with as well. 

They sat and talked for what felt like ages. Nick shared more about his life, telling Louis all sorts of stories about the Breakfast Show. He also confided in Louis just how nervous he was about judging the X Factor, but how excited about it he was because there was very little he loved more than discovering new artists. His passion for music was obvious, and that just made Louis like him even more. It also made Louis wish that he could sing for Nick, but he didn’t want to ruin what they had. He didn’t want to ruin Nick’s life. 

By the time they finished off the bottle of grape juice and the chocolates and biscuits, the stars were sparkling overhead. He didn’t want to leave, but he knew that they should probably get out of there before the herd of centaurs came back and something happened to Nick. Just as he was thinking that, Perrie, in her osprey form, flew low through the clearing. Louis recognized it as a signal that the herd was starting to head back, so he faked a yawn.

“Tired, love?” Nick asked with a gentle smile. Louis just nodded in response. “Let’s get out of here, then.”

“Alright,” Louis agreed, standing up slowly. He offered his hand to the taller man, helping him up from the grass. While Nick cleaned up any mess they had left, Louis whistled low for Liam to come back over to them. “Think you can handle this part?” Louis smirked over at Nick.

“Yes,” Nick huffed. “Reckon I’m an expert now.” Louis scoffed, but remained silent otherwise while Nick awkwardly hopped up on Liam’s back. It still wasn’t a very graceful mounting, but it was a slight improvement from earlier that evening. 

Louis hopped up behind Nick, wrapping his arms tightly around the human’s waist. He leaned into Nick, feeling the warmth radiating from him. He couldn’t help but close his eyes, breathing all of that warmth in. 

“Do I have to… steer?” Nick asked skeptically, looking around them as they stood in the clearing.

“Nah, Liam knows where he’s going,” Louis laughed. He nudged his legs gently into the horse’s side, and the horse began the walk back to the beach. Louis let out a content sigh from behind Nick. “This is nice,” he murmured into the human’s shoulder, blushing when he felt Nick grab one of his hands and squeeze it gently. 

The rest of the ride back was mostly silent, and Louis found that he was actually sad when they got back to the beach. When he’d first proposed taking Nick into the forest, he figured he’d show the man the rings, they’d chat for a bit, and then be on their way and he wouldn’t be bothered when it was over. But instead, Louis found that he didn’t want the evening to end. It had to, though, unfortunately. When Liam stopped, Louis carefully untangled himself from Nick’s limbs and got off the horse. He helped the human down, smiling sadly at him.

“I don’t like seeing you sad,” Nick murmured, reaching up to run his thumbs over Louis’ face gently. “Rather fond of your smile.”

“Rather fond of your face, even if it is ridiculous,” Louis murmured back, looking shyly up at Nick. He heard the horse wander off a bit, presumably to give them privacy for their goodbyes. 

“You’ll be here? For a while?” Nick asked.

Louis blinked in confusion. “Here like, on the beach?”

“No,” Nick laughed brightly. “Well, yes. But. No. On the island. In general.”

“Oh!” Louis grinned. “Yes. It is my home.”

“Good. Very good. I’ll be back here in a month or so. Radio 1 is putting on an anniversary party. I’d like to… see you then, if I could?” Nick asked, blushing slightly. It was an unusual look for the normally confident man.

As soon as Nick promised that he was coming back, Louis felt his whole spirit lift. Nick would be back. This wasn’t the end. Nick would be back, and in only a month’s time. “Yes!” He replied, flushing at how eager he sounded. “I mean, yes. I’d like that. I will wait for you.”

“Good,” Nick smiled brightly. “Shame you don’t have a phone, can’t text you to let you know when. But I _will_ find you, I promise.” He took Louis’ face gently in his hands. “I will come back to you, my little bird,” he said softly, then leaned in to press a gentle kiss to Louis’ lips.

“I will wait for you,” Louis repeated, which was enough for Nick. The human stepped back, pressing a kiss to Louis’ forehead before gathering up the shopping bag and heading off in the direction of his resort.

Louis watched him go, unconsciously pressing a finger to his lips. He tried desperately to keep the tears at bay, focusing instead on knowing that Nick would be back. They would find each other again. Louis closed his eyes briefly when he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around him from behind, and he leaned back into the comfort of the centaur, watching Nick walk away until he could no longer see him.


End file.
